Ubiquiti wifi bridge static on VoIP calls
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I set up a couple Ubiquiti NanoBeam AC (NBE-5AC-16) access points in a bridge about 400 meters apart. I updated the firmware, disconnected the old site to site VPN, connected the bridge and traffic started flowing. I then went in to the alignment tool and it looked so good I decided I didn't need to go back on the rooftop and align them. I then ran a speed test with a channel width of 80 Mhz and reached the theoretical maximum so I figured I was good.
As I tested the connection by running pings across, I noticed that they were inconsistent. Many were 1ms, but others were 3ms or much higher. I figured it would be better than the old internet based site to site VPN, so I left it in production. Later that morning, users were calling and I had to drop back to the VPN. When they called me on their VoIP phones, I noticed static on the call.
I did some reading and it looks like I might have to drop the channel width down. I tried dropping it remotely and running a speed test, and it took the speed from 451Mbps to 145Mbps, which is still acceptable as long as the connection is more stable. Is that the right thing to do, or should I be looking at other things? I should add the main reason I wanted to put in the wireless bridge is that the site to site VPN connection isn't stable enough for their terminal server sessions.
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Is the line of sight clear?
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Is there that much concern over 1-3ms? that seems pretty trivial. Now if it went from 1ms to 20ms,.. I might be more concerned.
You might be looking at a minor need for physical alignment. However since I have not yet dealt with bridges that needed this level of precision,.. I can't say for certain.
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@gjacobse I don't believe the 3MS jump is the cause for additional attention, instead the static and dropped connection issues being reported.
What what is "much higher" consist of?
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@scottalanmiller said in Ubiquiti wifi bridge static on VoIP calls:
Is the line of sight clear?
This would be my guess too. There is something obstructing the view. Or partially obstructing the view.
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What is the weather like today?
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The line of sight is clear in that I can see the access point from the other. One thing I don't understand is do you need much room around the line of sight? For example, at a certain channel width, do you need 1 meter on all sides of the line of sight?
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@Mike-Davis The general rule of thumb is you want an "unlimited line of site" in all directions of aim.
The signal won't "wobble" but the antenna might causing drop issues etc.
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@Mike-Davis Can you take a picture of the line of site from the antenna's?
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Is a static Wifi bridge the right call for VoIP? Isn't that unreliable to a degree? Dropped packets etc.
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As you can see, the tree tops may be an issue in some years.The weather has been clear.
I set up a similar wireless bridge and they don't have problems with VoIP calls.
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@Mike-Davis said in Ubiquiti wifi bridge static on VoIP calls:
As you can see, the tree tops may be an issue in some years.
The weather has been clear.
I set up a similar wireless bridge and they don't have problems with VoIP calls.
I haven't done this before so please don't take what I'm asking as any sort of challenge. I'm just working off of my own experiences with Wifi in general
Sounds really interesting if that's worked for you -
Are you certain that the mounting is solid and neither unit is moving? Seems that way, just checking.
I would definitely be worried about the pings not being stable. That is indicative (but not certain) of jitter on the connection.
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Both are mounted to the building like this. It doesn't seem like they can move.
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@Mike-Davis said in Ubiquiti wifi bridge static on VoIP calls:
Both are mounted to the building like this. It doesn't seem like they can move.
That does not appear very sturdy from this view. Could be, but it hanging out like that seems like it could wobble all over the place.
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It's lagged in there pretty good. I don't think it's moving without something breaking.
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@coliver said in Ubiquiti wifi bridge static on VoIP calls:
@Mike-Davis said in Ubiquiti wifi bridge static on VoIP calls:
Both are mounted to the building like this. It doesn't seem like they can move.
That does not appear very sturdy from this view. Could be, but it hanging out like that seems like it could wobble all over the place.
I agree. I think some wind would move that all over the place from the look of it.
Edit: Fair enough. Maybe I'm wrong.
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Ping times after running a few minutes:
Ping statistics for 192.168.1.19:
Packets: Sent = 244, Received = 244, Lost = 0 (0% loss),
Approximate round trip times in milli-seconds:
Minimum = 1ms, Maximum = 8ms, Average = 1msIt seems like the last time I ran it, I had some time outs. I'll run a longer ping.
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@Mike-Davis said in Ubiquiti wifi bridge static on VoIP calls:
Ping times after running a few minutes:
Ping statistics for 192.168.1.19:
Packets: Sent = 244, Received = 244, Lost = 0 (0% loss),
Approximate round trip times in milli-seconds:
Minimum = 1ms, Maximum = 8ms, Average = 1msIt seems like the last time I ran it, I had some time outs. I'll run a longer ping.
Are you pinging the AP on the other end of the connection, or are you pinging a device on the other end of the connection?
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@Mike-Davis From that picture you posted of the building, I'd be concerned that the antenna placement puts some of those trees in the LOS. Once leaves appear on the one tree, you'll probably see the signal strength drop.
I forget now exactly how large you want the area for good LOS between antennas, but I remember it being larger than you might assume from the size of most antennas. Something like 12'-15' if I remember correctly.
